Embedded Linux and the Law, Aug 01, 2002

The rising popularity of Linux, combined with perceived cost savings, has spurred many embedded developers to consider a real-time Linux variant as an alternative to a traditional RTOS. Here's the straight dope on the legal implications for the proprietary parts of your firmware.

MontaVista Software Inc. (Sunnyvale, CA) will announce on Monday a partnership with Seoul, Korea based Mizi Research Inc. whereby Mizi will market, distribute, and support MontaVista's products in Korea. The arrangement will cover the full range of MontaVista products, including MontaVista Linux Professional Edition, MontaVista Linux Carrier Grade Edition, Visual Age Micro Edition for MontaVista Linux, and MontaVista Graphics. Mizi will also provide first-line technical support for local software developers.

Dillo is a very fast, extremely small web browser that's completely written in C. The source and binary are less than 300KB each (currently, the binary is around 230KB). It is a graphical browser built upon GTK+ (GNOME is NOT required), and it renders a good subset of HTML -- excluding frames, JavaScript, and JVM support. Dillo aims to be a multi-platform browser alternative that's small, stable, developer-friendly, usable, fast, and extensible. Best of all, Dillo is a 'free software' project, released under the terms of the GNU general public license (GPL).

I'm writing this op-ed because I think I now understand how this dynamic is playing out, and as predicted, it's not pretty. If Linux is truly going to revolutionize the embedded systems market, it's going to do so on its own terms, and the embedded systems market needs to adapt to those terms, not the other way around. I believe that the companies that can adapt in time will not only be spared the ravages of the revolution, but will emerge as the new leaders; and those that don't will, at best, become new chapters in a book by Christensen yet to be written. Let me explain.

Linux is the only choice for product designers who want a powerful, open system and want to still have some control over the choices they make, Singh said. But the lack of a rigid standard could drive companies to Windows CE if the situation isn't addressed.

Tux-type Penguins, that is. Thanks to a project of the U.S. National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a webcam has for the first time been installed at the North Pole -- one which runs on Embedded Linux, no less! The device was installed on April 28, 2002 and is now logging four images a day, which are available on NOAA's publicly accessible website

Red Hat, the top seller of the Linux operating system, announced a deal Wednesday to support SuperH's forthcoming SH-5 chip.

The deal is an important victory for Red Hat's "embedded" computing division, which creates software for computing devices such as network routers, cars or handheld computers. The division has seen revenue slump as microprocessor companies cut back on new chip initiatives, Red Hat has said.

Red Hat, the top seller of the Linux operating system, announced a deal Wednesday to support SuperH's forthcoming SH-5 chip.

The deal is an important victory for Red Hat's "embedded" computing division, which creates software for computing devices such as network routers, cars or handheld computers. The division has seen revenue slump as microprocessor companies cut back on new chip initiatives, Red Hat has said.

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